As the pared down version of the pay-version System Mechanic Free is of course not going to offer quite the same level of options and functionality, however it performs all the basic tasks of privacy protection, registry cleanup, optimization and removal of hidden files. The ActiveCare automatic feature is handy for giving a basic level of optimisation for novice users, and the experienced can get in behind the hood and customise it to their preferences. System Mechanics Free also incorporates extra features that would normally be handled by other programs such as spyware removal, disk defragmentation and control of programs that run automatically on startup.

That’s not to say there aren’t a few downsides. Some of the more advanced tools can be difficult to handle such as the option to restore your system to a previous state. This function is less than obvious in the interface and doesn’t allow restoring of individual items. System Mechanic Free can also interact poorly with programs like AVG, which can be quite frustrating.

Overall, System Mechanic Free is a good program that can outperform many other free programs with its core features and also offers some handy extras. However the difficulty of using some advanced features and its problematic interaction with other programs can be a cause for frustration.